Dickstein Shapiro

Dickstein Shapiro LLP, a once-prominent "BigLaw" firm, was headquartered in Washington, D.C., with additional offices in major U.S. cities including New York City, Los Angeles, and Stamford, Connecticut. Founded in 1953, the firm was recognized as a large U.S. law firm, ranking 128th by the National Law Journal in 2012 and 75th in profit per attorney on the 2012 AmLaw 200 survey, operating with approximately 400 attorneys at its peak. However, Dickstein Shapiro ceased operations and dissolved in February 2016, with Blank Rome LLP acquiring roughly 100 of its lawyers and staff.

The firm maintained a robust intellectual property litigation practice, encompassing a broad range of technologies. Its expertise included patent litigation, trademark protection, copyright enforcement, and trade secret disputes across industries such as technology, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and consumer products. Specific areas of technical focus included computer science, life sciences, chemicals, and semiconductors.

Historically, Dickstein Shapiro's patent litigation practice showed a notable preference for representing plaintiffs, particularly patent owners, in infringement actions. The firm's tracked cases include a significant plaintiff-side appearance for I/P Engine, Inc., identified as a non-practicing entity (NPE), in litigation against AOL, Inc. and others. This case highlights the firm's role in patent enforcement for technology innovators.

A prominent patent litigation matter for the firm was I/P Engine, Inc. v. AOL, Inc. et al., where Dickstein Shapiro acted as counsel for the plaintiff. While initial reports mentioned a substantial jury award for a Dickstein Shapiro client in a separate cardiac-stent patent case, which was later overturned on appeal, the I/P Engine case itself ultimately saw prior judgments on supplemental damages and ongoing royalties vacated by the court in late 2015 and early 2016, following the Federal Circuit's reversal of the underlying patent infringement judgment.

The firm's IP practice also extended to USPTO contested proceedings, which would have included post-grant review mechanisms like Inter Partes Reviews (IPRs) after their introduction in 2012. Key attorneys associated with Dickstein Shapiro's patent litigation practice included Jeffrey K. Sherwood, who served as Lead Trial Counsel in I/P Engine, Inc. v. AOL, Inc. et al. and later became a co-practice group leader for Blank Rome's IP team. Other noted attorneys from the I/P Engine case included Frank C. Cimino, Jr., Kenneth W. Brothers, Dawn Rudenko Albert, Charles J. Monterio, Jr., and Jonathan L. Falkler.